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NOVEMBER, 1908.)
SOME ANGLO-INDIAN WORTHIES.
327
Upon receipt of the above instructions, the Council at Fort St. George wrote to Christopher Hatton, who had succeeded Matthew Mainwaring as Chief at Masulipatam, telling him to "especially give us an accompt of Mr Ambrose Salusbury deceased."71 This order was dated the 10th July 1679. On the 17th July, at a Consultation held at Masalipatam, we read, " The Councell have examined the Accounts of Mr Ambrose Salusbory and Mr Jobs Crandon deceased as they stand in the Generall books, and doe finde them to be right entered, and the Samms brought to their Creditts to agree with the Summa paid into Cash by the steward, Their distinckt accounts tracel all along from their commencement sro.ordered to be transcribed and inclosed in the packett to the Fort for the Agent and Councells perasali."72
Before this statement reached England Ambrose Salisbury's accounts were once again brought before the Court.
" At a Court of Committees holden 28th November, 1679 . . It is ordered that it be referred to Mr Herne and Mr Sambrooke to examine the account of Mr Ambrose Salisbury and to report the same."73 Also, in paragraph 5 of their "Generall " letter to Fort St. George, of the 31st December 1679, the Company wrote still niore emphatically with regard to the estates of deceased persons in general and to that of Ambrose Salisbury in particular. . "We have frequent and continued Complaints by the Relations of severall of our Factors deceased in India, for want of a true accompt and due care taken in the recovering in of their Estates, and in particuler by the Relations of Mr Bagnold, Mr Salisbory, Mr Covell, Mr Lanston and Mr Crandon and we cannot but much blame those our servants who were so neglectfull not to say dishonest therein ... it was made appeare... That £110 188. 6d. was received of the Estate of Mr Salisbury, nothing of which is as yet brought into our books. We cannot but highly disapprove of any such doeings, whereby the dead should be any waise wronged or their Relations in being detained so long time out of what is their due, and must impute it to the unjust practises of our Factors that have the management of receiveing in the Estate of persons deceased by making use of theis monies (under a pretence of not bringing of it into our books of Accompts until the whole be received) onto their owne private advantage. We would therefore have you strictly to examine those particulers and give us a full accompt thereof why the said money or any part thereof bave been so long detained in those hands who received the same and were not by him delivered unto his respective Chief that it might have been imediately brought into our Cash and books, that soe we might have paid it unto their Relations and thereby have avoided a great deale of Clammor and Ill surmise from them of our Factors dealings so unjustly by them, Mr Mainwaring affirming that be did not receive the aforesaid ... £110 188. 6d. of the Estate of Mr Salisbury out of the hands of Mr Henry Croone Cofborre untill after the of February 1677 and are the last books that we have had from Metchlepatam ... and Mr Mainwaring doth siso affirme that ... said soms were brought into our Cash by him as soono as received by him from the said Mr Colborne and were made good by him to us in those books Letter which are yet wanting here and not sent home by you, which if not already sent, we inorder you to Ballance and send us by the first conveyance ], and wee doe require you, as a standing Rule, that whatsoever some is received by any of our Factors of the Estate of any persons docessed that it be imediately brought into our Cash and posted into that years books and that upon no preteuce whatsoever the Steward or any other doe keepe it in their hands without giveing the said Porson deceased Credit in our looks for the same." 74
The delays in getting in Salisbury's debts appeared interminable. In March 1680, another debtor made an application.
11 Factory Records, Fort St. George, Vol. 18. 13 Court Minutos, Vol. 31, fol. 171.
ta Factory Records, Marulipatam Vol. 2. # Letter Book, Vol. 6, p. 140.